Ayano Yamane

This volume truly takes readers To the Edge. At the end of V10, Asami and Akihito, Feil Long and Mikhail, and the Russian rebels are all sent message by Sudo to come to a warehouse holding the missing shipment. The stage is set to finish it all.

This volume is mostly a knock down, drag out fight amongst the players. Bullets fly while Mikhail goes head to head with Yuri, and Fei Long and Asami dodge and kill his mercenaries. Akihito can no longer wait on the sidelines; he rushes in to find and help Asami. But will they make it out this time? This volume was very exciting, with all the players converged on the warehouse. Fei Long and Asami must work together to stop the Russian rebels.

While the cliffhanger ending is absolutely killing me (ah! I hate waiting!), there is so much awesome in this volume. I love the new romance developing between Fei Long and Mikhail; it was so satisfying to see our main couple finally express their feelings to each other; and, the tease of finally learning Asami’s past (he has a brother!?!) is so exhilarating. The two closing stories are two of my favorite Finder side stories. In the first, Akihito accuses Asami of stealing his pudding and when he denies it, Akihito turns to Fei Long to drink away his woes. Asami comes to retrieve his wayward lover, and Akihito will have s steep, bondage-heavy price to pay for running away to Fei Long! The deluxe edition bonus story is a sweet tale of Akihito’s efforts to celebrate Asami’s birthday. This volume has left me yearning for more.… (meer)

At the end of V9, Fei Long arranges to have Asami and Akihito flown to his private resort and then approaches Mikhail Arbatov, head of the Russian Mafia, to take down the Russian rebel group. Fei Long offers money, but Mikhail wants something else: Fei Long himself. Fei Long surprisingly agrees, but then they learn that Asami’s helicopter has disappeared over the ocean!

Honeymoon begins with Asami and Akihito crashed on a deserted island, with nothing to do but each other! LOL! This delightful interlude is woven through with the main plot as Fei Long has been taken by the Russian rebels, his Triad is in disarray and Mikhail discovers he knows the rebel leader. Asami’s people find the crash site soon enough, and he’s on his way back to Hong Kong. Akihito insists on coming with him and Asami agrees. They’ll face the danger together.

As has become standard, the volume ends with two cute Finder stories, one of which is the deluxe edition bonus. Both are fluffy and lightweight, but fun.… (meer)

Asami and Akihito escaped the condo assault, and Akihito has been hidden in a temple to keep him from being targeted. He’s going stir crazy not knowing with nothing to do and not knowing what is happening with Asami. Sudo is on the run from his buyers and Asami, and has teamed up with the shady Sakazaki to try and find the missing shipment. Asami has traveled to Hong Kong in pursuit, which naturally draws Fei Long into the fray.

When Akihito’s safe house is discovered, and unable to reach Asami, he turns to Fei Long for help. Fei Long decides to remove Asami from the situation so he can resolve it himself, but his underestimates the danger of Sudo’s buyers, a Russian rebel group. Akihito and Asami are reunited, but they’re out of the frying pan and into the fire.

Two cute and sexy Finder stories close the volume. In the first story, Asami comes home to find Akihito babysitting for a friend and the baby won’t quite until Asami holds him. The deluxe edition bonus story finds Akihito being bullied at a new job and Asami comes to his rescue in a most unusual way.… (meer)

V8 continues the Pray the Abyss arc, with Akihito infiltrating a brothel to try and find the missing hostess. But, things go south and he ends up being captured by Sudo – who has become obsessed with Asami and is completely unhinged. Kuroda and Asami come to the rescue, but the situation is far from resolved. Sudo’s buyers want the missing shipment and will do anything to get it – including a massive assault on Asami’s condo. There is a lot of exciting cat and mouse as Akihito and Asami hide from the mercenaries. Asami wants to protect Akihito, but they are vastly outnumbered and the odds are against them.

This volume hits the ground running and does not let up. Asami and Akihito have become much closer, but the danger has increased. Akihito has chosen: Asami is his and he will not give him up without a fight. The volume ends with two Finder stories: the first where Akihito accidentally ingests drugs and goes to Asami for “release.” The SuBlime deluxe edition bonus story is another cute interlude, where Asami has a custom suit made for Akihito and they go on a date. And end up naked in a hot tub together. A very sexy way to close the volume.… (meer)